Ugly duckling - WIP 2

What seems like several months ago now, I undertook the Asslessman's challenge to oldhammerers to convert a knight that would say something about where we lived or where we came from. Now that I've settled in Bedfordshire I chose a giant swan mount to play with (many, many swans congregate on the stretch of river that runs through the town). This also went with my idea of including it in my nascent Tzeentch-themed force - an evil swan ridden by a fallen knight seemed as if it must have been well and truly exposed to the warping power of Change to me, no longer images of purity, loyalty (swans really do mate for life) and steadfast chivalry.

The process was initially straightforward. I found a not-too-spiky chaos knight to use from a joblot I picked up at the usual online auction site, as well as a giant model bird with a bad attitude to press into service as his mount. 

Flashback photo! First used on this blog back in October 2013...

The beak was pretty easy to sculpt, at least to my own satisfaction, but then I hit the Problem. For some reason I just could not get the saddle and its strap to look smooth, let alone like a saddle and strap, so it got pushed to the back of my desk and abandoned.

No more, I tell you, no more! The saddle etc still look more than a bit shoddy, but I shall attempt to paint on the detail and competence that my putty-pushing skills evidently lack. The knight is done (yes, actually painted!) and the bird undercoated grey and inkwashed with Badab Black (my usual starting point). 

Pictures or it didn't happen, you say? Here you go:

Gaah! Some of those dark bits on the reins and saddle are just pools of wash, rather than horrendous lumpy bits, honest!

Hopefully there'll be something interesting but not too taxing on the gogglebox tonight so I can get on with actually painting the bird...

Geek on, my friends,

Rab